Bits, Gates, Traces, and PinsCopyleft and Licensing in Open Hardware

Josh Triplett

josh@joshtriplett.org

Jessica Marz

jessica.marz@intel.com

Disclaimers

● Josh is not a lawyer

● Jessica is not your lawyer

● Neither of us are speaking for our company

○ We’ll assume you aren’t either

● This is not legal advice

● Citations based primarily on US law

○ Portions applicable globally

○ International commentary/correction welcome

● Please feel free to ask questions at any time

Software Architecture

Code in the same source file

Code in the same source file Linking object files or libraries

Code in the same source file Linking object files or libraries

fork/exec

Code in the same source file Linking object files or libraries

fork/exec Servers, RPC, Sockets

Code in the same source file Linking object files or libraries

fork/exec Servers, RPC, Sockets

Shared memory

Code in the same source file Linking object files or libraries

fork/exec Servers, RPC, Sockets

Shared memory Standard APIs

Permissive licensing

Copyleft

Hardware Architecture

Physical object

Circuits on an ASIC

Components on an SoC

FPGA bitstream

Chips on a board

Printed circuit board (PCB)

Connectors

Forms of Hardware

STL file Physical object

Schematic Physical chip

Mask / Layout

FPGA bitstream Programmed FPGA

PCB layout Physical PCB

Permissive licensing

Copyleft

Intent

Copyleft & Hardware

● interesting and non-trivial

● permissive is easy, but does it give you what you want?

● copyleft goals

○ enable study of complete design in the form(s) preferred for making

modification

○ allow modification and distribution of modified design

○ ensure original licensor is able to benefit the same way licensee did

by having changes/derivatives made available under same license

○ ensure recognition/attribution of creative origin

○ expand the size of the “open commons”

+ additional hardware-specific goals

Implementation: Exclusive Rights

Exclusive Rights for Authors & Makers

● Copyright

● Patent

● Mask Work

● Trademark

Copyright

● Exclusive rights to:

○ reproduce the work

○ distribute copies of the work to the public

○ perform the work publicly

○ display the work publicly

○ prepare derivative works based on the work

● Subject matter

○ literary works

○ pictorial, graphic, & sculptural works

○ other (musical, dramatic, pantomime and choreographic, motion

pictures and other audiovisual works, sound recordings, architectural

works)

17 U.S.C. § 101 et seq

Patent

● Exclusive rights to:

○ make the invention

○ use the invention

○ sell the invention

○ import the invention

● Subject matter

○ process

○ machine

○ manufacture

○ composition of matter

35 U.S.C. § 100 et seq

Check out Frederik Questier’s talk “Protect your

freedom to operate with Open Patents: Hacking

the patent system” tomorrow @ 10:20 a.m.!

Mask Work

● Exclusive rights to:

○ reproduce the mask work by optical, electronic, or any other means

○ import or distribute a semiconductor chip product in which the mask

work is embodied

○ induce or knowingly to cause another person to do any of the acts

above

● Subject matter

○ Mask work fixed in a semiconductor chip

17 U.S.C. §§ 901-914

Trademark

● Exclusive rights to use the mark

○ Includes ability to prevent use of confusingly similar mark by

unauthorized party

● Subject matter

○ Word, name, symbol or device used to identify product

15 U.S.C. § 1051 et seq

Protectable? Protected?Hardware & Forms, redux

Printed Circuit Board

● schematic capture / logical circuit design

● layout / physical implementation

● manufactured board that embodies design

kicad_eeschema.png, by KiCad-pcb.org, CC BY 3.0

kicad_pcbnew.png, by KiCad-pcb.org, CC BY 3.0

https://github.com/fd0/hackrf-one-pictures/blob/

master/img_0009.jpg, public domain

Silicon● Mask works

Semiconductor_photomask.jpg, by Peellden - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0 Intel_CPU_Core_i7_2600K_Sandy_Bridge_top.jpg, by Eric Gaba, CC BY-SA 3.0

Silicon, continued

● IP cores

○ Hard

○ Soft

○ Libraries

Adapted from IP Quality & Reuse.jpg, by Patrickyip - own work, Public Domain

FPGA bitstream Programmed FPGA

Open Hardware, including “opened” FPGA!

https://gitlab.com/Folknology/mystorm/tree/master

Enclosure

Original design, created in CAD tool vs. scan of existing object

● Useful vs. creative

● Separability analysis required to determine whether copyright applies

Intel Galileo enclosure by bubbasnow, CC BY-SA.

State of Open Hardware Licensing

LicenseSolderpad Hardware

LicenseCERN OHL TAPR OHL GPLv3

Our Ideal Hardware

LicenseSource availability requirement?

N Y Y Y Y

Derived works must remain under same license?

N Y Y Y, withexceptions

Y, with exceptions

Use for any purpose? Y Y N Y Y

Patent grant? Y Y Y Y Y

Treat physical hardware like “binaries”: require source?

N Y Y N Y

Compatible with copyleft SW license (i.e., GPLv3)?

Y N N Y Y

License Compatibility

● Want to support copying between software, hardware, firmware,

documentation, specifications

● Boundaries will become fuzzier over time

● “Eating the world”

● Want compatible licenses for all of these ecosystems

○ Please do: account for hardware in new revisions of licenses

○ Please don’t: write your own license for hardware

Open Hardware Ecosystem

● Early days of open hardware

● Most production designs still include proprietary components

● Similar to the early days of Free Software

● Proprietary parts libraries remain a major obstacle

○ Open hardware needs open part libraries!

Recommendations

● For chips, use GPLv3 for copyleft

● For PCBs, use copyleft if desired (many will respect intent)

○ Likely ineffective for physical board

● Develop and contribute to open part libraries

● For drafters of future versions of established copyleft licenses

○ Allow for mask works and other applicable legal structures

○ Treat physical hardware like “binaries”: require source

Questions?